Hey OzBargain,
I know there's another thread around here similar to this one but was wondering if someone could help find me a return flight to America (NY area) from Melbourne at around June. My mate says it's around 1900 but was wondering if I could get by cheaper? I'm 18 and have no idea how to go about getting the cheapest travel expenses over and back. I am taking 1 x excess baggage.
Any help would be appreciated,
Thanks!!!
To start with search google for travel airfare comparison websites.
My personal preference is Expedia. I find it the quickest way to find the cheapest of the usual airfares.
I've also seen OzBargainers post about Adioso and IWantThatFlight.
Since June isn't far away you will find that prices will actually start getting more expensive + available flights will disappear as it gets closer to your intended flight date. To understand the system just Google search "ways to save money on air travel".
If you had loads more time (eg. months) and were on a tight budget then read online travel forums/boards. Requires reading through posted messages. The traveller websites reveal the best deals quicker than OzBargain. You can also subscribe to the emailing lists of your favourite airlines. Eg. Qantas, Virgin. You will get lots of useless spam but sometimes will be the first to hear about big sales.
The problem about sale airfares is that there are limited number of seats at sale prices (eg. 10 seats per flight). The best deals such as $1 flights get sold out in minutes so it pays to know your travel dates/destinations, luggage needs, food options, which payment methods attract +15% surcharges, … etc. 50% off sales usually sell in hours.
If there are no sales and wish to pay full airfare prices then take the opportunity to choose the flights that offer the most leg room since the US is a long haul flight and every centimeter of leg room makes a HUGE difference when flying economy. Search reviews/feedback on travel websites of the possible airlines. Its overkill but I research down to the seat size (eg. leg room, width, seat pitch, seats per row) but flight numbers, plane model numbers, seating layouts are not contained in one easy Expedia type website.
If you are new to flying then don't forget to take into account the 2-3 hours pre-boarding times + delays with customs (especially in the US). As well as considering travel insurance. If you are interested in travel insurance then that's an even bigger discussion topic than this one.